Can coworking marketplaces help fill your space?

Recently, we attended a webinar hosted by the Global Workspace Association (GWA), titled Scaling Coworking: The Marketplace Effect.

The discussion featured industry leaders exploring how coworking marketplaces like DeskPass and CoworkingCafe help independent operators attract teams and larger companies. GWA continues to provide valuable conversations for the coworking industry, bringing together experts to share their knowledge and strategies for success.

The dream is simple. Run a coworking space, create a thriving community, and fill your offices with the kind of members who stick around, pay on time, and tell their friends how great you are. But the reality? It’s a little more complicated.

Filling empty offices takes effort. Marketing is expensive. Convincing big companies to trust an independent coworking space isn’t easy, even with multiple locations and great amenities. And when a private office suddenly becomes available, you don’t have months to sit on your hands waiting for the perfect tenant.

That’s where platforms like CoworkingCafe and DeskPass come in, hoping to connect independent operators with teams and companies looking for flexible office space. They aggregate demand—gathering all the people and businesses searching for coworking into one place—so that your space gets seen by the right people at the right time.

But are they worth it? Are they just turning coworking into a race to the bottom? Are they going to take over and replace operators altogether?

How do these marketplaces actually work, and what can they do for coworking space owners like you?

Your biggest problem isn’t demand—it’s getting in front of it

Coworking demand is growing. More companies are ditching traditional leases and turning to flexible workspaces. More remote workers are looking for professional environments beyond their kitchen tables. More teams need places to gather without the overhead of a full-time office.

But if you’re running an independent coworking space, you know the challenge isn’t that nobody wants what you’re offering—it’s that they don’t know you exist.

Sam Rosen, founder of DeskPass, has been in the coworking world for 17 years. “It feels like we’ve made a lot of progress,” he says, “but flexible work and coworking are still in their infancy. Most companies are still figuring out their workplace strategy. They don’t know what their employees need. And their employees don’t even know what they need.”

Marketplaces try to bridge the gap between people searching for coworking and the spaces ready to welcome them.

Marketplaces are not the enemy. They are demand generators

We hear a common concern from independent operators: listing on a marketplace means losing control. You become just another name on a long list. You get lumped in with the big players. You lose the direct connection to your members.

But operators who have used these platforms see things differently. Kane Willmott, CEO of IQ Offices, says marketplaces have introduced his company to enterprise clients they never would have met otherwise. 

“Our cost to acquire a private office member might be $200 from Google ads,” he explains. “But with a marketplace, I get a paid booking in my space, and that person might be from a company that ends up signing a long-term deal. That’s a negative cost of customer acquisition. I’ll take that all day.”

DeskPass, CoworkingCafe, and similar platforms say they do not replace coworking brands. They hope to help companies discover them. And when members book through these platforms and have a great experience, they ideally convert into direct, long-term customers. 

This isn’t just about day passes

One of the biggest misconceptions about coworking marketplaces is that they are only useful for hot desk bookings. But the reality is far bigger.

Operators can list everything from private offices and meeting rooms to event spaces and team suites. “We don’t hold any of our inventory off the market for on-demand bookings yet,” says Willmott. “But if the demand gets deep enough, we might. Because if I can make $15,000 a month from short-term bookings instead of $10,000 from a single long-term tenant, why wouldn’t I?”

For many companies, these platforms aren’t just a way to find a desk for the day—they’re a way to test out spaces, bring teams together, and figure out their long-term office strategy. Tara Collard, Senior Program Manager at Degreed, explains that her fully remote company uses DeskPass not just for individual coworking but also for team meetings and strategy sessions. “Some people just need a desk and WiFi. Others want a space that fits their vibe for the day. We love having that flexibility.”

The magic happens when you can make the member’s life easier

For coworking marketplaces to work, the booking experience has to be seamless. If it’s too complicated, people will default to traditional leasing or just stay home.

Collard says her team values speed above all else. “Users should be able to find and book a space within seconds. They want clear photos, real-time availability, and straightforward pricing. They want to know what they’re walking into. And they don’t want to deal with paperwork.”

This is where operators can take control. The better your listing — the better your photos, descriptions, and booking process — the better your results. Marketplaces work best when the experience is frictionless, both for the person booking and the space hosting them.

So, should you list your space on a marketplace?

It depends on your goals. If you have an occupancy rate of 100% and a waitlist a mile long, maybe you don’t need a marketplace. But if you want to:

• Get in front of more companies and teams
• Fill short-term vacancies without heavy marketing costs
• Convert one-time bookings into long-term members

...then it’s worth exploring.

We are not saying marketplaces are perfect. They are still evolving. They don’t work for every space in every scenario. But they are helping independent coworking operators compete, attract corporate users, and expand their reach in a way that wasn’t possible a few years ago.

“We’re just at the beginning,” says Rosen. “There’s so much untapped demand. The more we remove friction, the more companies will choose coworking over traditional offices. And that benefits everyone.”

So, the question isn’t whether coworking marketplaces are taking over. The question is whether you’re ready to let them work for you.

Again, this article was inspired by insights shared in the Global Workspace Association webinar, Scaling Coworking: The Marketplace Effect. GWA continues to support the coworking and flexible workspace industry by facilitating conversations that help operators grow, adapt, and thrive.